Dambulla: 

Opener Virat Kohli, whose 37 proved valuable in India's successful run chase in the second one-dayer against Sri Lanka yesterday.

Listening to criticism of why teenager Virat Kohli should not have been plucked from the middle-order and asked to open makes you wonder why all the fuss.

Brought in as opener in place of the injured Virender Sehwag, there was the argument he was out of his depth in the unfamiliar position. The criticism became louder after his failure in tricky conditions in the opening game of the series when making his debut.

Beset by injuries to both opening batsmen with Gautam Gambhir ruled out of the second game through a stiff neck, India were in trouble. It also meant that Gary Kirsten and the coaching staff had no one else to turn to.
 
You can also guarantee that Sehwag, young Kohli's Delhi senior partner, had a hand in mentioning his name as likely candidate for the opener's berth.

Confidence

Not only did Kohli anchor the early stages of India's innings in reply to Sri Lanka's 142 in this second ODI clash of the Idea Cup series, his batting efforts explained why the team's coaching staff (and no doubt Sehwag) had confidence in his ability to achieve what they wanted.

The result was an accomplished innings of 37 in a total of 143 for seven wickets, and the way he batted against someone such as Ajantha Mendis was typical of the  muted hype surrounding such a talented young man that says he is cool under pressure.

Tricky

On Monday he was gone early, the victim of the tricky conditions at Rangiri Stadium in the heart of what is the Emerald Isle's cultural heartland.

While his innings lasted 82 minutes in which he faced 67 balls with six fours, it was the way he pulled India through the first tricky overs of the innings that earned him praise from the coach Kirsten.

While the fourth wicket to fall when he departed in the 20th over of the innings with the total of 75, he at least showed how to handle bowlers such as Mendis.

This is no easy baptism, but he displayed class and panache: a cover drive that had the fieldsmen watching in surprise at its audacity, and a square cut that showed he was prepared to take on the mystery bowler as no other Indian batsman has attempted so far.